When South By Southwest Interactive launched in 1994, there wasn't much to it: a couple hundred participants and a handful of panel discussions, all crammed into a few rooms at a Hyatt in Austin. Back then, the festival was really only half a festival — as evidenced by its title, SXSW Film and Multimedia — and was eclipsed by the vastly more successful SXSW Music Festival, from which it had spun off.' (Fast Company)

Discovery is the name of the game for many at SXSW, and this show is all about up-and-coming talent. Whether it's the upbeat, celebratory feel of Louisiana's Royal Teeth or the ghostly experimental electronic music of Alligator Indian, this edition of All Songs Considered is bursting with passion and unique voices. (NPR)

Alt-pop trio Sir Sly have flown under the radar in the States so far, but they are poised to make big waves at SXSW. The band is signed to the same UK label who preached the gospel of Haim, Atlas Genius and Chvrches early on — and Cherrytree Records in the U.S., which is home to Feist, Robyn and Disclosure among others — and Sir Sly's dark pop tunes fit in well with that company. (TIME)

In 1955, a woman baring her shoulders on stage was considered controversial, as was doing so while shaking it in a satin-fringe dress. But that's how an 18-year-old Wanda Jackson burst onto the music scene — "an atomic bomb in lipstick," as Bob Dylan famously described her. Many consider her to be the first woman to write and perform rock 'n' roll. (Paste)